This is tactically very clever. We know the Lib Dems have been "borrowing" Consevative votes and a move to bring back their soft support could not have been timed better.
I listened to Kennedy spluttering through a long radio interview in which his only defence was that no real Lib Dem would do this. Well Charles, there are not many "real" Lib Dems in your party! What there is are some very sane, rational people in the Lib Dem party who clearly belong with us. As time goes on they will come to realise this and move back to supporting us.
Nick Assinder at the BBC has done a good analysis of this and the Lib Dem Leadership crisis.
10 comments:
I am a Lib Dem. Not any more though.
Cameron has got my support.
I stopped supporting the Tories because they had started to stand for evil with their obsession with getting the economy right. I am retired and for me there was more to what I wanted the state to do than just economics.
You were an excellent candidate for the Tories at the last election but I could not support you whilst your party kept going on about immigration. I was against it but I didn't want to shoot people at the ports!
Anyway - I'm back. You and Cameron have got my vote but make sure I have not made a mistake.
www.libdems4cameron.co.uk
I can't stop looking at the maps on the webpage showing all Lib Dem seats turning blue - unrealisitc I know, but what a pretty sight!
It amuses me that the Lib Dems have so quickly made an alternative site, as posted by the last anonymous. Don't get me wrong I'm not the biggest fan of the media getting it right, but from what I'm reading in all the news reports it doesn't look like messing about with Cameron's site is going to be doing them much good!
They made up two spoof sites. One came from the students but the one detailed above seems to originate from Lib Dem HQ.
Pretty childish really and clearly they are worried by this development.
It was highly amusing that Kennedy went on TV to have a go at Cameron over environmental policy when only a few weeks ago they were ckaiming victory over a joint Tory/Lid Dem approach to the environment. One cannot help but think this is desperate opportunism on the part of the Lib Dems.
"One cannot help but think this is desperate opportunism on the part of the Lib Dems."
That's hilarious given the opportunism of Cameron in trying to woo Lib Dems to the Conservative fold just because our MPs are wondering whether to get the knives out. You're welcome to any members/MPs/councillors who're opportunistic enough to jump to the Conservatives on the back of a website in the hope they might win a seat in Parliament or on a council somewhere(given that you guys seemingly have no policies on localism, green politics or social justice that's gotta be the only reason they'd join you) - I'm sure such principled people are the kind you'd really want!
Anon is making the unsupported assumption that people support or work for the Lib Dems because of their policies.
As they have no chance of becoming a Government, and no chance of their policies ever being enacted, many Lib Dem supporters are simply unaware and do not care.
I found on doorsteps that when you told Lib Dems what they supported they pretty soon pledged to support us.
I think there are many people of all parties who aren't actually really aware of what they're voting for (unfortunately). Where I live, I've asked people who say that they'd vote conservative locally if they can think of one thing their 2 conservative councillors have done since 2002, 91% of them can't - and they have no idea of what a Conservative Council would do (local cons aren't putting out any literature on this either). However, that wasn't really my point, my point was that libdems4cameron is just an opportunistic attempt to get people to switch to the Conservative party on the back of vague assertions that don't really seem to make much sense when you think about the last Conservative Government (centralising, emasculating local democracy) and current Conservative policy.
On the subject of environmentalism, I notice the link to an 'alternative' environmental website - I'm presuming that you endorse it in some way? Now, I'm all for debate about these things - and I'm not saying that there might not be valid points on that site, but I bet when most people think about a 'commitment to green politics' they don't consider some of the ideas raised on that website to be evidence of it - ie that recycling could be more trouble than it's worth and that global warming isn't as high a priority for the earth as some might suggest. I wonder if anyone who joins 'Cameron's Conservatives' on the basis of localism and green politics would be pleased to find the potential leader of Kingson council endorsing/supporting such views?
Most voters may not grasp the detail of p[olicy but they vote for a direction of flow. That direction has always been pretty clear labour and the Conservatives (indeed it is why it has taken so long for both parties to adapt to the changed times when they needed to; the memories lingered on) Most voters do not know the direction of flow of the Lib Dems because they do not need to. They are as close to power now as the SDP were in 1983.
When I put that link to a better earth up I said at the time I did not endorse it but merely that it was an interesting alternative view.
I think the issue on localism can be a false dichotomy. The first task is to get more powers to local government. My view is that powers over the local health service, for example, should be one area that would come under Local Authority control. Localism is not just about setting up whole bunches of committees to pretend polticians are engaging with people. It is actually about ensuring that local politicians have the powers and authority to deliver for residents those things which they want to see happen. The trouble with Local Government is those powers do not currently exist. A Conservative party needs to work to make that happen. Incidentally I am also a fan of elected Police Chiefs. I think the behaviour of the current Commissioner has not been good. He is appointed by the Home Secretary and accountable to him. About time we all had a say in who runs the Police Service.
Yes the Conservative Governments of the past did centralise and they would argue that was to tackle the circumstances of the time. However parties change, they are not preserved in aspic. Look how Labour had to change from where it was in the 70' and 80's to where it emerged in 1997. No one can argue that its polciies were the same in 1997 as they were in 1977. Even the Lib Dems are now trying to pretend they do not believe in high taxes, having believed in them virtually since the day the party was formed in the 80's. (Not much evidence they want to keep tax down locally by the way.)
If you want to see a little more of what I believe in then I suggest you visit this site:
www.direct-democracy.co.uk
As for your comments about leaflets: there are many more ways to talk to residents than through leaflets.(Direct mail being one) As the Lib Dems have equally stopped putting out leaflets (except in St. Mark's) they clearly believe that as well.
Fair point about a party changing its position - although I'll only believe a conservative change of direction on localism when I see it (sadly I fear I will see a Conservative government in my lifetime).
I also think your point about vague directions is good - parties reinterpret their policies in the light of a vaguely consistent general direction (on the subject of Lib Dem tax policy, think the point to make is we've always believed in fairer taxation - in specific circumstances this general direction has been interpreted by the party and its policies as higher taxation. They're currently re-interpreting that position now - in response to the 'circumstances of the time' - rather like the Tories and localism?).
Talking about having a chance of getting near power - aside from pointing out that the labour party was once the small third party with no chance of getting near power - MPs do actually play a role in the legislative process even when not in power, eg detention without trial - a fairly major thing that opposition MPs did. But not just that, the Government makes a myriad of compromise amendments when putting legislation through in response to the concerns of its own MPs and sometimes the opposition. This means that there is a point in voting for someone else except Lab or Cons, and I think people increasingly realise it (ie fairly steep reduction in people voting for the two biggest parties over 20th/21st century). And I don't think the lib dems are the only party to benefit from protest or tactical voting.
Lastly on leaflets - no they're not the only way to communicate, but no method has been used to communicste with even the Conservative supporters in the ward I live in (in Wimbledon) - they don't know what their councillors have been doing over the last 4 years. Whilst I'm no fan of Labour-Merton council I couldn't bring myself to vote for a party that claims to care what I think but (locally) doesn't want to risk finding out.
Not much I can add except I agree with you!!
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